Hes with a pack at mile 99.  F1 is first overall by quite a bit.  Weather here is hard rain and flooding.  Did my first treadmill since last winter brutal.  Hope Skims weather just up north of me was better for his race.

F1 (Courtney Dauwalter) set the American Record at 24-hour this spring, FYI. She is smart and tough and if she's leading now, I expect her to stay that way.

A quick recap of my race today.  I finished in 6:53:02, which I'm very happy about because the race went about as well as I could have hoped.  There was rain off and on the whole time--sometimes pretty heavy--but I didn't really mind because it kept things cool (but not cold).  I wasn't sure up until this morning what I should wear because I wasn't sure if I'd get too cold, but running in shorts and singlet was perfect for the conditions (rainy but in the 60s).  Also, no chafing or blistering problems at all despite being wet the whole time.  And I didn't have to stop to take a dump.  I did stop to pee 4 times, though considering how wet I was from the rain I could have saved time by just peeing on the run.  I guess there are always things to improve for next time. 

I felt quite good until about mile 35 when my legs began to fatigue and hurt, so I knew that I'd just have to endure the pain.  I don't think I slowed down too much towards the end, though, as I think I ran a pretty even split for the two halves (I can't be sure because due to running in a few tunnels, my watch got confused and only measured 49.2 miles).

I carried a 10-oz Amphipod handheld which I filled up (actually, AS volunteers filled for me) every 5-6 miles or so at aid stations.  That worked well, and with the gels/granola bars I carried and the stuff they had at aid stations, I never felt like I ran out of calories.

I ran in Asics Lyteracer RS 4 which were great, Patagonia Strider Pro 5-inch shorts which are my all-time favorite shorts, and some cheap Asics singlet.

Finally, I'd highly recommend the Des Plaines River Trail Races.  The course is great, the event is well organized and cheap if you register early (I paid $80), the AS volunteers really try to be helpful, and it's all runnable (if that's important to you).  And it's easy for people to see you at various points; including the start and finish, my wife saw me 10 times by driving to various aid stations.

I still want to do well in a longer mountainous ultra for a different experience and challenge, but that's for some other day.  For now, I'm going to put my sore legs up and enjoy this one for a while.

I've learned a lot from all the good advice/input I've received from many of you in the past months, so thank you.

Nice race Skim.  Impressive time!!!!   Might be trying some of that steak loading for my next one.

Another great week for me with 55 miles, 9000 gain.  Long run of 25 miles with 7100 gain.  Weather has been great and work is slowing down.  "Hay is in the barn" and now it is time to play (after my hunny do's are done, of course).  Officially committed to the Zion 100 (gulp).

Congrats, Skim!  I forgot what distance you'd raced and when I read it was 50mi that's an incredible time.  Job well done.  

Here's hoping Courtney pulls it out; I really think she's a lock for UROY, she's had an incredible 2017.

Nice race Skim.  Impressive time!!!!   Might be trying some of that steak loading for my next one.

 

Thanks!  I did, in fact, eat a big steak with rice for lunch the day before the race, followed by lots of spaghetti for dinner.  Not saying it was the key to my performance, but I'm not not saying that either. 

Here's hoping Courtney pulls it out; I really think she's a lock for UROY, she's had an incredible 2017.

That is true... but Ultrarunning Magazine's UROY awards are often based more on popularity than achievement. However, she is popular as well as accomplished, so certainly I expect her to be high in the rankings. Accomplishments are not always rewarded. Courtney's biggest achievement this year was setting the 24-hour American Record, smashing Sabrina Little's 152.03 miles with a stellar 155.39. But (1) last year, when Gina Slaby broke the 100-mile WORLD record -- formerly an Ann Trason record, that had stood for 25 years -- that netted her 10th place in the UROY voting. Because she was an unknown. Even though she had won ALL of her 13 ultras to that point in convincing fashion, often snagging the overall win. And (2) at the 24-hour World Championships this summer in Belfast, Katy Nagy ran even farther, 155.73 miles. (Because of the horrendous timing malfunctions at Worlds, unfortunately this does not meet the stringent standards for a new American Record.) Meanwhile Courtney ran 140.65 at Worlds; Gina ran 154.27, also beating the former AR.

All that is probably beside the point, because road & track performances mean little to the UROY voters. More equitable, perhaps, are the USATF ultra runner of the year awards. But they do not have an overall award, instead awarding it in several categories (mountain, sub-ultra trail, trail, road; open, masters).

Weekly Summary
Monday, Oct 09, 2017 thru Sunday, Oct 15, 2017

Getting the hang of Strava.  Have to figure some of it out like editing and TM runs.  There has been times when I forget to turn my watch off and drive home.  Pace 2 min/mile.  Or left it on overnight.

One training week left then start taper.  Not really enough time to do anything new really just maintain fitness.  I am going to start some focused walking at a faster pace because I have never really focused on that much.

Skim - congrats, that's an amazing time! More like a 50k time for me if it's not too hilly. Are you running the Thailand 100k again? A guy I work with won it a couple years ago, ran with him on Monday, he went slow for me, and ran way ahead to do an extra climb

Almost 70 miles of running this week, and another 4.6mi of walking. Did 2 long runs on the same course, one on Monday (holiday here) and one on Sunday. Did a virtual 8km race on Saturday, the Ghost Race on Strava, messed up the turnaround, so I'll probably do it again this Saturday, only ran it at steady state pace anyways. I think that might be a record week for me for elevation gain, with 9905'

Weekly Summary
Monday, Oct 09, 2017 thru Sunday, Oct 15, 2017